API: Difference between revisions

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Commentary and examples of using the ~~<abbr title="Application Programming Interface">API</abbr>s~~ (Application Programming Interface) for software like [http://wiki.civicrm.org/confluence/display/CRMDOC/Using+the+API CiviCRM], [[MediaWiki]], Drupal and web services. Both API documentation and API tools. OS and Internet API references.

Commentary and examples of using the APIs (Application Programming Interface) for software like [http://wiki.civicrm.org/confluence/display/CRMDOC/Using+the+API CiviCRM], [[MediaWiki]], Drupal and web services. Both API documentation and API tools. OS and Internet API references.

[[wp:ApplicationProgrammingInterface|Application Programming Interface]] ([[wp:API|API]]) is the information about the exposed or 'public' variables, methods and objects or classes that a system makes available to the developer who wishes to interface with the system programmatically. If you make an API, documenting the API is a critical software development function. In documentation terms, the API must almost be treated like a separate piece of software within or "attached" to the main program.

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== MediaWiki API ==

An example of the MediaWiki API in use is at the "[https://freephile.org/wikireport/index.php Wiki Report]" project. Another very interesting example is the [https://wikiapiary.com/wiki/~~Newburyport_GNUs~~ Wiki Apiary] (clever name!)

MediaWiki has a strong '''action''' API (also called the web service API) which has it's endpoint at api.php. See the docs at https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/API:Main_page

Since MW 1.27, there is also a SpecialPage [[mw:Special:ApiSandbox|Special:ApiSandbox]] [https://demo.qualitybox.us/wiki/Special:ApiSandbox Demo site] for interacting with the API - just like the API explorer for CiviCRM. (previously it was an extension)

An example of the MediaWiki API in use is at the "[https://freephile.org/wikireport/index.php Wiki Report]" project. Another very interesting example is the [https://wikiapiary.com/wiki/Freephile_Wiki Wiki Apiary] (clever name!)

Similarly, there is a [[wp:Module:Sandbox|Module:Sandbox]] for testing Lua scripts

===Example Questions ===

Here are some example requests to the API

# https://wiki.freephile.org/wiki/api.php?action=query&meta=siteinfo&siprop=extensions With no 'format' argument, you will get a "pretty" HTML output that you can read in your browser.

# https://wiki.freephile.org/wiki/api.php?action=query&meta=siteinfo&siprop=extensions&format=json With *json* explicitly requested as the format, you can get values suitable for actual programming.

See [[Categories/javascript]] for an example using the internal JavaScript API '''mw.Api'''

== Developer Tools ==

Among other tools, you're going to need to look at HTTP requests and responses to develop web services using APIs. So, check out tools like [[Wireshark]] (https://www.wireshark.org/), the [https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Tools/Network_Monitor Network Monitor]<ref>The "Live HTTP Headers" add-on still exists, but that is no longer neccessary given the development of the core features of the in-browser developer tools</ref> in [https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Tools Developer Tools] for [[Firefox]], or [https://developer.chrome.com/devtools Chrome Developer Tools]

== Integrators ==

Companies like [https://platform.ifttt.com/docs IFTTT] (If This Then That) and [https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/zapier#/entity Zapier] offer API integrations so that you can tie together applications via their APIs without any coding.

[[Category:Applications]]

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-Commentary and examples of using the <abbr title="Application Programming Interface">API</abbr>s (Application Programming Interface) for software like [http://wiki.civicrm.org/confluence/display/CRMDOC/Using+the+API CiviCRM], [[MediaWiki]], Drupal and web services.  Both API documentation and API tools. OS and Internet API references.
+Commentary and examples of using the APIs (Application Programming Interface) for software like [http://wiki.civicrm.org/confluence/display/CRMDOC/Using+the+API CiviCRM], [[MediaWiki]], Drupal and web services.  Both API documentation and API tools. OS and Internet API references.
 [[wp:ApplicationProgrammingInterface|Application Programming Interface]] ([[wp:API|API]]) is the information about the exposed or 'public' variables, methods and objects or classes that a system makes available to the developer who wishes to interface with the system programmatically.  If you make an API, documenting the API is a critical software development function.  In documentation terms, the API must almost be treated like a separate piece of software within or "attached" to the main program.
@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 == MediaWiki API ==
-An example of the MediaWiki API in use is at the "[https://freephile.org/wikireport/index.php Wiki Report]" project.  Another very interesting example is the [https://wikiapiary.com/wiki/Newburyport_GNUs Wiki Apiary] (clever name!)
+MediaWiki has a strong '''action''' API (also called the web service API) which has it's endpoint at api.php. See the docs at https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/API:Main_page
+Since MW 1.27, there is also a SpecialPage [[mw:Special:ApiSandbox|Special:ApiSandbox]] [https://demo.qualitybox.us/wiki/Special:ApiSandbox Demo site] for interacting with the API - just like the API explorer for CiviCRM. (previously it was an extension)
+An example of the MediaWiki API in use is at the "[https://freephile.org/wikireport/index.php Wiki Report]" project.  Another very interesting example is the [https://wikiapiary.com/wiki/Freephile_Wiki Wiki Apiary] (clever name!)
+Similarly, there is a [[wp:Module:Sandbox|Module:Sandbox]] for testing Lua scripts
+===Example Questions ===
+Here are some example requests to the API
+# https://wiki.freephile.org/wiki/api.php?action=query&meta=siteinfo&siprop=extensions With no 'format' argument, you will get a "pretty" HTML output that you can read in your browser.
+# https://wiki.freephile.org/wiki/api.php?action=query&meta=siteinfo&siprop=extensions&format=json With *json* explicitly requested as the format, you can get values suitable for actual programming.
+See [[Categories/javascript]] for an example using the internal JavaScript API '''mw.Api'''
+== Developer Tools ==
+Among other tools, you're going to need to look at HTTP requests and responses to develop web services using APIs.  So, check out tools like [[Wireshark]] (https://www.wireshark.org/),  the [https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Tools/Network_Monitor Network Monitor]<ref>The "Live HTTP Headers" add-on still exists, but that is no longer neccessary given the development of the core features of the in-browser developer tools</ref> in [https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Tools Developer Tools] for [[Firefox]], or [https://developer.chrome.com/devtools Chrome Developer Tools]
+== Integrators ==
+Companies like [https://platform.ifttt.com/docs IFTTT] (If This Then That) and [https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/zapier#/entity Zapier] offer API integrations so that you can tie together applications via their APIs without any coding.
+{{References}}
 [[Category:Applications]]